Ex-Soviet Minister Arrested

MOSCOW — A newspaper today confirmed long-standing rumors that a former deputy minister of foreign trade who frequently headed Soviet delegations at meetings with American businessmen has been arrested for violating customs regulations.

Izvestia disclosed the arrest in a long article about a Soviet customs service campaign to combat smuggling and contraband. It listed Vladimir Sushkov among those arrested for violating customs rules but gave no further details of the case and did not say what has happened to him.